The Sun Crystal
by Fearless Swan
Summary: Sly and several other thieves attempt to steal a rare gem from an evil scientist.
1. Plans for Adventure

NOTE- Sly Cooper and related characters are property of Sucker Punch Entertainment  
  
THE SUN CRYSTAL  
  
CHAPTER ONE- Plans for Adventure  
  
FOREST CITY, N.Y.  
  
Andy Clark sat on his living room couch, a bottle of vodka in one paw and the television remote control in the other. Lately, it had seemed like the young raccoon had been doing more drinking than thieving. He had sent Chris, his hedgehog friend, out to see if he could come up with anything for him and his gang to steal, and now awaited his return. Just as Andy was about to take another drink from his bottle, Chris burst into the house excitedly.  
  
"You guys, I think I've found our next theft," the hedgehog said, pausing to catch his breath.  
  
"Close the door, will ya?" Tony said, looking up from the computer.  
  
Chris closed the front door, came into the living room, and sat down on the couch next to Andy. "So, let's hear it already," Andy said, taking a drink.  
  
"Apparently, the legendary Sun Crystal has been stolen from its vault in southern Greece by an evil scientist known as Dr. Roskov. He has taken it to his secret underground compound outside Prague, where, supposedly, he plans on using it to power a death ray."  
  
"Wow," remarked Andy. "A chance to do my two favorite things-thievery and do goodery." "Let's get to planning this thing."  
  
"I think you had better sober up first," Tony said to his friend.  
  
"What do you mean?" Andy said. He then attempted to stand up, but fell over. His bear friend Jake helped him up, and then grabbed the raccoon's vodka bottle, drinking some himself.  
  
"Perhaps you're right. Good night, everyone," Andy then said, stumbling toward his bedroom.  
  
Tony sighed and returned his attentions to the computer screen. "I sure hope you're right about all this," the crow said to Chris.  
  
The next day  
  
Andy and his gang were now assembled in his underground command center preparing for yet another adventure.  
  
"My head hurts," Andy said with a groan.  
  
  
  
"It should," said Tony. "You drank half a bottle of vodka all by yourself. You really need to cut back on the booze, Andy."  
  
"I don't believe this. I'm getting lectured about drinking by the guy who drinks malt liquor for breakfast," Andy said, glaring at the crow.  
  
"Umm, can we get on with this already?" Jake asked of his colleagues.  
  
"Yes, lets," said Tony as he spread a map out across the surface of a table.  
  
"Now, I think the best way to enter this place will be to start here," he said, pointing out a location. "We'll use our Drill Master 9000 to drill down and then use a passageway here to gain access to the main area of the compound. Of course, this place is heavily guarded, so you will have to be extra-careful."  
  
"Don't worry. I will," Andy said.  
  
"I'd better get the old Drill Master ready," Tony said. "Jake, will you help me out?"  
  
"Sure thing," the bear said.  
  
The four of them then made their way out of the secret room.  
  
Meanwhile, on the other side of Forest City, two more thieves were in an abandoned warehouse making their own plans for the Sun Crystal. The two were none other than Matt Blizzard, the deranged penguin and sworn enemy of Andy Clark, and Ross McGraw, the aspiring young rooster thief.  
  
"I just found out that the super-rare Sun Crystal has been stolen and transported to a secret underground compound," Blizzard said to his young associate. "And we're going to go and steal it for ourselves."  
  
"That's what you called me here for? Count me out!" Ross said to the penguin. "The last time I teamed up with you, you had me break into an empty house. Well, empty except for two dozen cops!!" The rooster then headed for the door.  
  
Matt stood in his way. "You owe me, rooster boy."  
  
"What are you talking about?" McGraw asked.  
  
"Don't play stupid with me. You don't think I forgot that little heist you pulled on me a couple months back, do you?" Matt drew his freeze gun. "Now, either you're going to help me, or you're going to end up in the deep freeze," he said.  
  
"Oh, all right," the rooster then said. "But, if this little mission ends in failure, I don't ever want to see your ugly mug again."  
  
"Fine," said the penguin. "Now, you go home and rest your pretty little head, and come back here first thing tomorrow morning so we can plan this thing." The penguin then moved out of Ross's way.  
  
"Whatever you say." The rooster then left the warehouse. 


	2. Enter Sly Cooper

CHAPTER TWO- Enter Sly Cooper (and two other guys)  
  
PARIS, FRANCE  
  
Sly Cooper's turtle friend Bentley sat on the couch flipping through the pages of the Thievius Raccoonus, Sly's family heirloom and the source of all his stealing skills. "Hey Sly, how come you never use this move?" he called to his friend.  
  
Just then, Sly burst into the living room from the kitchen. "Give me that, you moron," he said, grabbing the book from the turtle. "This is for Coopers only."  
  
Cooper then went into his bedroom and hid the Thievius Raccoonus. "Stinkin' turtle," he muttered as he emerged from his room.  
  
Sly's assistant Veronica was at the computer. "Hey Sly, I think I've found our next heist," the blue jay said.  
  
"At least someone around here is doing something productive instead of prying into my private business," Sly said, glancing toward Bentley.  
  
"The legendary Sun Crystal has been stolen by an evil scientist named Dr. Roskov. He apparently has plans to use it as the power source of a death ray."  
  
"That sounds like utter nonsense," Bentley said. "Nobody knows if this Sun Crystal is even real or not." The other two just ignored him.  
  
"This is great," said Sly. "It gives me a chance to do my two favorite things - stealing and good deeds."  
  
"This isn't going to be a picnic," Veronica said. "Roskov's underground compound is one of the most heavily fortified places on Earth."  
  
"That's even better," Sly said. "Things have been entirely too easy for us lately. We need a good challenge."  
  
"You know, you're right," the blue jay said.  
  
"Well, I think you're both insane," Bentley said. "You two can go off on this wild goose chase, but I'm staying right here."  
  
"Fine," Sly said.  
  
"OK. Let's get a plan together," Veronica said, getting up from her seat and heading for the kitchen. Sly joined her in the kitchen, as well as Murray, who was already out there, stuffing his face as usual.  
  
LONDON, ENGLAND  
  
The last several months have been rough ones for Tim Merriweather. Not only had the young fox been arrested during a routine robbery, but he was also deported from the United States back to his native UK.  
  
Broke and jobless, Tim now lives in a filthy, run-down apartment with his mother and his partner in crime, still searching for a big-time heist in spite of his friends' and family's pleas to give up thieving.  
  
Tim sat in the corner of his living room reading a newspaper. "Look at this," the fox said to his friend, a badger. "The legendary Sun Crystal has been stolen by this scientist."  
  
"And I suppose you want us to go over and swipe it from him," the badger said. "Look, Tim. You're just not thieving material. Give up already."  
  
"Never!" Tim asserted. "Sly Cooper would never quit, and neither shall I."  
  
"But the Cooper family have been stealing for centuries. You are just a novice," his friend then said.  
  
Ignoring his friend, Tim continued reading. "The gem is believed to have been taken to a secret underground compound someplace in eastern Europe."  
  
"This job should be no trouble for two master thieves such as ourselves," the fox then said.  
  
"Here we go again," the badger said with a groan. "We don't even know where this jewel is being hidden."  
  
"Must you always be so negative?" Merriweather responded.  
  
"I'm warning you," his friend then said. "If we fail again, this friendship is over."  
  
"Whatever you say, Sam. Let us get going. Great riches await us." Tim then got up fro his seat and gathered up his thieving tools.  
  
"And just how do you expect us to locate this scientist's stronghold?" the badger asked.  
  
"We'll use my trusty map," Tim said.  
  
"That is a place mat from the International House of Pancakes," Sam said.  
  
"Well, technically...Enough of this. We must go," Tim said.  
  
"Go where? We don't even have any plans," his badger friend said.  
  
"Plans?! Real thieves don't need such rubbish!" Tim said.  
  
"Come! We have much adventuring to do," he then said, opening the apartment's front door. "To the Green Avenger!"  
  
"You mean your mum's Yugo?" Sam asked as they exited the apartment.  
  
"Must you spoil all my fun?" Tim asked as they headed toward the stairs.  
  
"Why do I continually put up with you?" the badger said.  
  
"Because I'm the greatest adventurer the world has ever known," Tim responded.  
  
Sam groaned as they got into the car. The two then drove off, not exactly knowing where they would end up. 


	3. The Adventure Begins

CHAPTER THREE- The Adventure Begins  
  
Several Days Later  
  
ELMSFORD, N.Y.  
  
Matt Blizzard and Ross McGraw were stuck in the middle of a huge traffic jam as they made their way out of Forest City to try and steal the elusive Sun Crystal.  
  
"I told you this would happen," Ross said to his penguin associate. "But you wouldn't listen. You just HAD to take the scenic route."  
  
"Shut up. Just shut up!" Matt responded "Move it, Grandma!!" He then screamed as he pressed down on the horn.  
  
"At this rate, we'll never get there," Ross then moaned. "I bet Andy Clark wouldn't have made such dumb travel plans."  
  
"I thought I told you never to mention that name around me," Matt said angrily.  
  
"Sorry," the rooster responded. "But that's the truth."  
  
PRAGUE, CZECH REP.  
  
While his two rivals sat stuck in traffic, Andy and his gang had already arrived at their destination. "Wow. That had to be one of our quickest trips ever. I'm sorry I doubted your shortcut," Andy said to Jake.  
  
"It's no problem," the bear said.  
  
"All right. Let's get started," Tony said as he opened the back doors of the gang's truck. He then pushed out a ramp. Jake then climbed into the back of the truck and helped Tony push a strange-looking contraption down the ramp and out of the truck. "OK Andy, hop in," Tony said, opening a hatch on the machine.  
  
"I sure hope this thing is safe," Andy said, climbing in.  
  
"The Drill Master 9000 should not concern you. The real danger's in getting caught. Rumor has it that this Roskov finds raccoons to be quite tasty," his crow friend said.  
  
"That is SICK," Andy said. "Wish me luck." The raccoon then closed the hatch on the Drill Master, and with a few button pushes, the machine had started up and had begun to bore into the ground.  
  
"I've got a bad feeling about this," Jake said as he and Tony watched their friend disappear into the unknown. 


	4. Trouble Down Below

CHAPTER FOUR- Trouble Down Below  
  
Andy Clark had burrowed his way into Dr. Roskov's secret underground lair as planned. Having safely reached his destination, the raccoon shut down the drilling machine and climbed out of it. Now the real challenge was about to begin.  
  
Just as Tony had said, there was a passageway in one corner of the massive cavern into which he had drilled. Andy stepped cautiously into the darkened opening.  
  
Moments later, he emerged from the tunnel, yet was forced to quickly duck back in to avoid being spotted by two guards. Other than that one close call, Andy had no trouble gaining access to the main chamber, which held the glowing yellow Sun Crystal.  
  
However, it turned out that he had been beaten to the treasure. Andy arrived just in time to spot his good friend and ally Sly Cooper removing the precious crystal from its display case.  
  
"That Sun Crystal sure is something else, isn't it?" Andy said to his friend.  
  
A startled Sly turned around and briefly looked at Andy. "Oh. Hey there," he said nervously. "Long time no see."  
  
"Well, you see, things have come up. First, your girlfriend nearly put me behind bars and then my family teamed up with my archenemy and -"   
  
Just then, Sly cut him off. "We've got company."  
  
Andy turned to see a large, fierce-looking Siberian husky wearing a lab coat and glasses. The dog was accompanied by two swine henchmen. "Roskov," Andy said.  
  
"Ah, Sly Cooper and Andy Clark," the husky said in a thick accent. "Two tender, delicious-looking young raccoons for my dinner."  
  
"What is this guy babbling about?" Sly asked.  
  
"He wants to EAT us!!" Andy said.  
  
"Not if I have anything to say about it," Sly said as he attempted to flee. But it was to no avail. The raccoon was quickly subdued by one of Roskov's thugs. Andy put up a bit of a fight, but he too was defeated by the scientist's thug. "Take our two guests to the dungeon," Roskov instructed his two henchmen. "I will deal with them later," he said with a laugh as he picked up the yellow crystal and returned it to its pedestal. Roskov then noticed Sly's cane lying on the floor and picked it up as well. "A fine souvenir of our little encounter," he said as he departed.  
  
Roskov's two agents removed both raccoons' backpacks as well as Andy's weapon belt before tossing both into a darkened dirty cell. "What now?" Sly asked.  
  
"Fear not," said Andy. "These guys are good, but not good enough." He then reached into the fur of his tail and pulled out a hairpin, which he promptly fashioned into a lock pick. He then set to work on the cell door, and within seconds had it open.  
  
"Unbelievable," Sly remarked.  
  
"Let's get out of here," Andy said. The two then set out to recover their gear and then make a getaway. 


	5. Send In The Clowns

CHAPTER FIVE- Send In The Clowns  
  
As Andy Clark and Sly Cooper were attempting to escape the evil scientist's secret compound, Matt Blizzard and Ross McGraw were just arriving at the scene.  
  
"Is that Clark's van?" Ross asked, peering out of the side window of the car. "I told you we would be beaten here."  
  
"Shut your face, chicken," Blizzard snapped. "We've got work to do." The two got out of the car, opened the trunk and gathered their tools to make a vain attempt at infiltrating the underground compound.  
  
Ross stopped and stared toward Clark's getaway truck. "Come on!!" Matt shouted, grabbing the rooster by the shirt collar. The two then disappeared into the darkness.  
  
After driving for almost two days straight, Tim Merriweather and his assistant Sam arrived.... someplace.  
  
"Well, we've finally made it. The secret lair of the evil Dr. Roscoe should be just beneath us," Tim announced triumphantly.  
  
"I thought his name was Roskov," Sam said, irritated. "And I don't think we're anywhere near his secret lair."  
  
"What makes you say that?" Tim asked.  
  
"All the buildings, the people. They look Chinese," Sam said, scanning their surroundings.  
  
"Ethnic neighborhood?" Tim said.  
  
"You drove us halfway around the flipping world, you idiot!" the badger snapped.  
  
"But me map has never failed me before," the fox said, looking at the syrup-stained pancake restaurant place mat.  
  
"That's NOT a map!!" Sam yelled, grabbing the place mat and tearing it to shreds. "I'm going to try and find out where exactly it is you drove us," the badger said, getting out of the car. "You stay here."  
  
"But-" Tim whined. But it was too late. The fox's friend had already dashed off. Tim then shrugged and cranked up the car radio as he placed his feet up on the dashboard. 


	6. The Escape

CHAPTER SIX- The Escape  
  
Sly and Andy were now sneaking through them maze of tunnels and hallways that made up the mad scientist's headquarters in search of their stolen equipment when all of a sudden, the two raccoons heard the sound of Roskov's voice and stopped. "Yes, Mr. Woods. The death ray is complete. I will ship it out to you just as soon as I test it out," the scientist said into the telephone.  
  
"Woods?" Andy whispered. "I sure hope he isn't talking to Reggie Woods. The thought of that moron with a death ray is almost too horrible to contemplate."  
  
"The thought of anyone with a death ray frightens me," Sly said. "We'd better get that gem away from that guy before he can send the laser out."  
  
"You're right," said Andy.  
  
Hearing footsteps, the two thieves dashed into hiding. From their hiding place, a trash bin, the two watched as Roskov walked off. After the scientist had disappeared from sight, the raccoons emerged and went into the room Roskov had occupied.  
  
They searched around, and sure enough, their thieving gear was sitting on a counter top in the corner of the room. The duo quickly grabbed their things. "OK. Now let's go get that Sun Crystal," Sly said. They both then dashed out of the room.  
  
The two raccoon thieves quickly and stealthily made their way back to the main chamber of the compound. Just as Andy was about to lift the crystal from its display case, he noticed that the ceiling above him was crumbling. "What now?" Andy said as he grabbed the jewel and quickly moved out of the way.  
  
Tons of rock and dirt poured down on top of the display case and then two creatures, a penguin and a rooster, dropped down into the chamber. The penguin had with him a jackhammer, which he quickly shut down.   
  
"If it isn't Matt Blizzard, the world's biggest dork," Andy said to the penguin. "And...I don't know who you are, but you must be a loser if you're hanging around with this guy," he then said to the rooster.  
  
"Hey," he snapped back. "I'm Ross McGraw, the aspiring young thief. I thought everyone heard of me."  
  
"Well, you'd better find a new associate if you expect to get anywhere in this business," Andy then said to the fowl.  
  
"SHUT UP!" Matt squawked. "And hand over that pretty yellow rock." The penguin pointed his freeze ray at Andy. Sly then swung his cane and knocked Blizzard halfway across the room. Sly and Andy then started to race toward the exit. Ross pulled out a handgun and fired it at the fleeing Cooper, but hit only the raccoon's backpack. "Nice shooting," Matt said sarcastically as he struggled to get up.  
  
"Well, at least I tried," the rooster whined.  
  
Just then Roskov and his henchmen entered the chamber. "Ah, more company," the husky said. "You two will make fine test subjects for my-wait a minute. Which one of you filthy little vermin stole my crystal?"  
  
"Don't look at us, fuzzy," Blizzard said. "It was that empty-headed raccoon and his little friend."  
  
"Raccoon?" the scientist asked. "Blast it! My dinner has escaped! Did you happen to see where the ring tails went?"  
  
"I was kind of too busy writhing in pain to notice," Matt said sarcastically.  
  
"And what about you?" Roskov asked McGraw.  
  
"Beats me," the rooster said.  
  
"Search every inch of this compound. Those thieves must be stopped," Roskov ordered his thugs.  
  
"Yes, sir," said one of them. The two swine then left.  
  
"As for you two," the husky said to Matt and Ross. "Leave my compound before I consider dining upon your carcasses instead of the raccoons." The two thieves quickly ran out.  
  
"But, my jackhammer," Matt said.  
  
"Forget about that," Ross snapped.  
  
Meanwhile, Andy had led Sly back to where he had originally tunneled into the underground den. "What is that thing?" Sly asked, spotting Andy's drill machine.  
  
"That's not important now," Andy said. "Just get in."  
  
"Um, OK," Sly said, opening the hatch and climbing in. Andy himself then got in and closed the hatch. He then pushed some buttons and started the device. The machine moved across the room and began to burrow through wall of the cavern.   
  
As they drilled up to the surface, Sly opened his backpack and took out his Binoc-U-Com, which had been destroyed by Ross's bullet. "Once again, this little gadget has saved my life," Sly said, returning the broken device to his backpack. "That rooster is just lucky I have more than one of these." Suddenly, the drill machine stopped.  
  
"Another successful getaway," Andy said, opening the hatch of the driller.  
  
"What a ride," Sly said. "Where did you get this thing?"  
  
"Don't ask me. It's Tony's," Andy said. "Here." He handed the Sun Crystal to Sly.  
  
"No. You keep it," Sly said, returning it.  
  
"I insist you have it. You stole it first," Andy said, once again handing the gem to Cooper.  
  
"Oh, fine. If it will make you happy," Sly said. He then placed the crystal in his backpack.  
  
"I better be going," Sly then said.  
  
"OK. I hope to see you again real soon," Andy said.  
  
"Bye." Sly Cooper then vanished from sight.  
  
"Well, this was a total waste," Andy thought as he picked up his radio to contact his partners. Just then, he felt someone behind him. It was Matt Blizzard and his sidekick Ross McGraw.  
  
"Not you two again," he moaned.  
  
"Yes. It's us again," the penguin said. "You have been a thorn in my side for too many years. Now I'm going to finish you off once and for all. Here is one target even you can't miss, Ross."  
  
"We have a real comedian here tonight," Ross said. The rooster then drew his pistol, and as he was about to fire, Andy kicked him, knocking both he and Blizzard into the Drill Master. he then slammed the hatch shut, quickly took out a remote control, and pushed a button, which started the machine and sent it back underground.  
  
"Good riddance," Andy said as his getaway truck pulled up. "Maybe this little trip wasn't a total bust after all," he thought as he climbed in. Andy and his team then drove off.  
  
THE END 


	7. Epilogue

EPILOGUE  
  
Sly Cooper was overjoyed as he returned home from his latest adventure. Once again, his friend Bentley was wrong. The Sun Crystal was in fact real, and Sly had had little trouble in stealing it.  
  
"It's about time you two got back," Bentley said as Sly and Veronica stepped into the hideout. Sly set his backpack on the coffee table, opened it, and produced the Sun Crystal. He then went over to Bentley and held the bright yellow gem in front of the turtle's face.  
  
"So, the Sun Crystal is just a myth, huh?" he said boastfully. "This 'myth' should fetch us at least a couple mil."  
  
"Wow," Bentley said, taking the crystal from Sly. "It's marvelous."  
  
"I believe you have something to say," Sly said, snatching the gem back.  
  
"I was....wrong. You were....right," the turtle said with a pained expression on his face.  
  
"When has old Sly ever steered us wrong before?" Cooper then said as he placed the crystal in a strong box.  
  
"Well, there was that whole F.O.W.L. fiasco," Murray said, emerging from the kitchen with a plate of nachos the size of a station wagon. "You promised us tons of gold, and we come home empty-handed."  
  
"Who asked you, fat boy?" Sly said, flopping down on the couch and placing his paws up on the coffee table.  
  
"Hey! Get your filthy feet off that table!" Bentley demanded.  
  
"What a life I lead," Sly said to himself, ignoring the turtle. The raccoon then drifted off to sleep after yet another eventful night of thieving.  
  
*****************************************************************************************************  
  
It had now been four days since Tim Merriweather's friend Sam had left the fox in search of directions and it had finally dawned on him that the badger wasn't returning. "Oh well," Merriweather said, starting up the car. "Even though I've lost my partner, this has been yet another successful adventure for Merriweather the Master Thief." He then slammed his foot on the accelerator, not realizing that his car had been facing the ocean. Tim Merriweather and his green Yugo plunged into the water, and with a loud splash, both sank like a rock into the South China Sea, perhaps never to be seen again.  
  
As his associate was was well on his way to his first undersea adventure, Sam the badger was many miles away relaxing on a tropical beach. "That fox has got to be the most stupid creature who has ever lived," Sam thought to himself as he watched the waves.  
  
*****************************************************************************************************  
  
Matt Blizzard had finally gained control over the drill machine into which he and his partner Ross McGraw had been sealed. Unfortunately, the penguin had drilled to the surface just in time for the arrival of Inspector Carmelita Fox, who was investigating yet another Sly Cooper sighting. The fox emerged from her squad car just as Ross and Matt emerged from the Drill Master. "Not you again," she said to the penguin.  
  
"You two haven't by any chance seen this raccoon, have you?" the detective asked the two, showing them a picture of Sly.  
  
"Maybe I have and maybe I haven't," Matt responded.  
  
"Come on, Carm. We don't have time for these two cretins," her partner, a jackrabbit, said. "That Cooper could have robbed this whole city blind by now."  
  
"Consider yourselves lucky," Fox said as she turned and walked away.  
  
"I told you this little plan of yours was doomed from the start," Ross said angrily.  
  
The penguin glared at him. "Let's get out of here."  
  
The two then started off for home. 


End file.
